you know a lot of younger people, they don't know the traditional ways. a lot of us lost our culture. if we do our traditional way then it would actually help us to get all the healing and strength that we need. (vo)four months ago, martina appealed to the tribal council on rosebud, to tear down the abandoned houses like the one where her daughter was murdered. today, that house, and the rest still stand.

>>what would you like to happen to this house? >>i want a medicine man to go in there and pray, you know and let her go and all that. let her spirit go, because i feel like she's still in there.

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: hey, good morning everybody. what do you say? it is thursday morning february 28th. this is the "full court press." welcome to the program here on current tv as we boom out to you live from our studio on capitol hill and bring you up to date on all the goings on today here in our nation's capital. and around the country around the globe. today is benedict xvi's last day on the job as pope. it is jack lew's first day on the job as our new treasury secretary. and today is the last chance congress has to take any action to avoid the sequester. it ain't gonna happen.

the cuts are going to kick in. now, the only question is who is going to get the blame? we know who deserves the blame republicans in the house of representatives. that's it. that and a lot more for the "full court press." first, let's get the latest, we start out with our current news update from lisa ferguson out in los angeles. hi lisa, good morning. >> hey bill. good morning everyone. the senate today will vote on two plans to deal with the sequester but lawmakers still are not confident they'll be able to reach a deal before tomorrow. both piece of legislation would prevent those across the board spending cuts at least temporarily. democrats are offering up a plan to put off this year's cuts by increasing the tax on millionaires up to 30% and by taking some money away from defense and farm payments. republicans say no way on raising taxes. the democrats plan is likely to fail today. it will not get the 60 votes needed to overcome the filibuster.

g.o.p. numbers of the senate have drafted up their own proposal. it would require the same level of budget cuts as the sequester but it would force the president to decide which programs would see those cuts and which would be spared. but that plan is doomed as well. even if it does pass the senate and that's because president obama said he will not agree to any deal on the sequester that does not include increased tax revenue along with cuts in spending. but if congress refuses to act it is faced with a shutdown. money to fund the federal government will run out on march 27th. that's less than a month away. the house says it will take up a resolution next week to fund the government through the rest of the fiscal year but that only gets it through september 30th. lawmakers wills attach two additional provisions to that bill giving the pentagon more flexibility on how it implements those sequester cuts. more bill up next. stay with us.

billy zane stars in barabbas. coming in march to reelz. to find reelz in your area, go to reelz.com

>> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: rosa parks has a new seat up-front on the bus. hey, good morning everybody. what do you say? here we go. thursday, february 28th. last day of the shortest month of the year. is this a -- no, that's right. 29th is when you have a leap year. it is a regular ole february. good to see you today on this regular ole day. no such thing as a regular ole day on the "full court press." you never know what's going to happen around here. thank you for joining us. hello, hello, hello, wherever you happen to be in this great land. we are there with you. we are there for you to talk about the stories in the news

this morning. whether it's happening here in our nation's capital washington, d.c., around the country or around the globe we've got it covered. we'll tell you what's going on but more important than that, we'll give you a chance to tell us what you think about these items in the news today. you can do so by giving us a call. we always tell you that at 1-866-55-press. that's our toll free number. you can follow us on twitter at bpshow at bpshow. more and more people do every day. and when you follow us on twitter, you get the advantage of following my tweets from the white house briefings every day. you can follow us on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. and become one of our friends on facebook. lots going on today. this is the last day before the sequester kicks in. although there's some dispute whether it kicks in thursday, tonight at midnight or tomorrow night at midnight.

but one or the other it is upon us. we'll get into that and a whole lot more this morning, with you and with our team. peter ogborn. dan henning. phil backert on phones and cyprian bowlding on video cam. we don't give either of those two a microphone. we tried it once. >> really bad. >> bill: it was really disastrous. >> we're still work out of the fcc fines. >> bill: i was going to say. that big hearing we had for that stuff cyprian said on the air it was embarrassing. >> to think that phil, in the middle of the halftime show that we have every day here on the full time press took his breast out, it was awful. >> bill: so that's why they don't have a microphone. >> bill: a sad passing yesterday. the death announced of ben clyburn. a real american legend. died at the age of 78.

clyburn was 23 years old. this is in the middle of the cold war. it is a totally different time. hard to believe that something like this would get that kind of attention today. but in the middle of the cold war, united states versus the soviet union. ben clyburn this young american from shreveport, louisiana, goes to moscow and enters the shy koskie piano competition. this is the classic great russian composer and here is this american kid going over there whoer had the hutzpah the dare to even try to play tchaikovsky and he does, one of the classic tchaikovsky competitions. ♪ >> bill: and he won! he won! the country just went wild!

this country. because we beat the russians in the cold war, we beat them at their own game. we beat them with their own composer. and here's -- he came back to the united states, this is a pianist, right, he was given a ticker-tape parade on broadway. can you imagine that? can you imagine that happening today for any musician? >> no. >> bill: or a poet or writer or pianist? no. >> anything short of a sports figure or maybe an astronaut that's about it. >> bill: yeah, right. he certainly made a mark on this country. >> bill: boy, what a line-up we've got for you today. the new senator from wisconsin, tammy baldwin on the "full court press." former senator and our good friend from north dakota, byron dorgan here on the "full court press." the very articulate, aggressive, effective congresswoman from maryland donna edwards here today on the "full court press."

and a whole lot more! and michael bloomberg, man of the hour. but first... >> this is the "full court press." >> some other headlines making news on this thursday. an nfl prospect tried clarifying his comments yesterday after saying a team asked him if he liked girl the or not. nick cafe is a player forethe university of colorado told the dan patrick radio program he didn't think they were really trying to find out his sexual orientation, rather that they were just firing questions at him to test his focus. the day before, he told espn radio he thought them asking about his sexual orientation is a little weird. >> bill: let me tell you something, you don't make -- you don't ask a question like that unless -- >> to test focus. >> bill: exactly. they knew exactly -- they just kind of threw it in there to see if they could catch him off-guard. >> the pope retires today. he will get to keep his title sort of. the vatican releasing details.

he will be referred to as pope am aritous and will live in a monastery, still white but it will be a more humble robe than he has now. he will have to give up the red prada custom shoes. >> bill: only the pope gets to wear the red shoes. the pope and dorothy. [ laughter ] >> a lot in common, i guess. >> actress anne hathaway apologized yesterday for the dress that she wore to the oscars last weekend but not for what everyone thought that she would apologize for. that her breasts were quite visible and became the talk of the night. rather in a statement to "people" magazine, she said while she was expecting to wear a valentino designed dress she switched at the last minute to a prada-designed dress. she was sorry to valentino who is a close friend of hers and anyone else bothered by her -- >> bill: she may as well not have had a dress on. >> she wore a prada dress.

>> and the pope wears prada shoes. "the devil wears prada." >> bill: the devil wears thrift store. we find out about that from pat roberts. >> bill: boy, there was a powerful, powerful morning yesterday on capitol hill in the senate judiciary committee. a special hearing called to consider senator dianne feinstein's bill which would ban assault weapons. it was very, very powerful. ted cruz and lindsey graham made total asses of themselves which is easy for them to do. but the most powerful testimony came from the father of one of the little kids, little angels killed at sandy hook elementary school. neil talked about that morning dropping his son off at sandy hook his little son jesse. >> i'm jesse lewis' dad.

jesse was brutally murdered. at sandy hook school. on december 14th, 20 minutes after i dropped him off. >> bill: dropped him off at school. he talked about the little -- his kid gave his dad a big hug patted him on the back. 20 minutes later adam lanza 11 shots, right. just unbelievably brutal. he had a picture there of himself with his son. and as he pointed out look, let's just get real, okay. you can support the second amendment and he does. but it has nothing to do with an ar-15. >> when that was written almost 300 years ago we didn't have these weapons we have today and the technology. they had muskets and cannons. >> bill: different time, different time. no reason, no reason to support

the easy availability and accessibility to those kind of weapons of war. >> it is so sad the strongest voices that you hear on this issue are the people who have had everything taken away from them. that is brutal to listen to. >> bill: the parents -- the girl in chicago, all of the kids in chicago, these parents from sandy hook then you get those total a-holes like ted cruz but you can't interfere with our second amendment rights. that has nothing to do with it. lindsey graham trying to prove he's a real man keeps bragging about you know, i'm tired of his bragging about the size of his guns. you know what i mean? >> oh, yeah. >> bill: that hearing -- but there is attention yesterday on guns. with michael bloomberg meeting with vice president biden. he came to the white house yesterday. i didn't see him. i was there for the briefing. but he had a meeting across the street there with the vice president and the old executive office building or might have

been in the vice president's office in the white house because he did come out and he spoke to reporters, talking about the meeting that he had with joe biden. >> i walk away, pleased optimistic. i'm not under any delusion that this is a slam dunk or that it is already in the bag if you will. >> bill: and now, you know we dump on -- all of us as americans, certainly i do here on the "full court press," dump on politicians. i dump on lindsey graham and ted cruz. even president obama when we're not happy with some step that he's taken or some stance he's taken or something he said, will be critical of him. but you know, once in awhile there is a politician who comes along, you gotta say he did the right thing or he's doing the right thing. just once in awhile. i think it is important to say it. damn it, today i want to say michael bloomberg is the man. he's the man of the hour. now look, i know he can be a

pain in the ass. certainly to the people of new york. although he's very popular. but he does come across sometimes as the ultimate nanny mayor. nanny state nanny city, if you will. i mean remember, he's the guy that said no smoking in the bars and restaurants. no smoke even outside -- have to keep a certain distance away of bars and restaurants. he banned msg. he made the restaurants put their calorie counts on the menus and he's the guy most recently said you can't buy any soda larger than a 16 ounce drink. right? so all of that kind of stuff yeah people say he's kind of gone too far. by the way i think those are all good measures. should the government be doing that? probably but it's still a pain in the ass, let's say. on guns, he has really stood up, tall and straight!

i say that for a man who's probably only about five foot tall. he has been great. so he just got tired of the fact -- he's long been a supporter of tough gun control measures and tough gun safety measures. but he got tired of the fact and frustrated when there were so many politicians who might want to do something about gun control but were afraid to because of the nra and the political clout of the nra. he formed his own super pac last year. he put $9 million into it. by the way which is nothing right, compared to the koch brothers who put $100 million into trying to defeat democratic candidates around the country. michael bloomberg put in $9 million and he targeted certain races where there was one candidate for gun control and one candidate against it. either democratic primary or a general election. he got into six congressional

races. he won three out of six. won three lost three. and then he got into the senate race up in maine where he helped elect angus king as the -- as the new senator from maine. the most well-known of the congressional races that he won was congressman joe bach ca, long time democratic congressman from southern california and he supported a candidate a democrat against joe bach at in the primary she's now the new congresswoman from california, she's pro gun safety and joe was pro-nra. compare bloomberg's win three lose three to karl rove who spent $300 million and lost eight out of nine senate races goat involved in and of course, lost the was white -- white house. michael bloomberg gets involved in that crazy congressional

primary to take jesse jackson's seat out in chicago. there were like 13 candidates. the two leading ones, debbie halverson was expected to win hands down. she was a former member of congress. she was 100% nra. blomberg gets involved, supports somebody nobody ever heard of, robin kelly who is willing to take on the nra who is pro-gun safety and robin kelly wins and robin kelly is the new member of congress from chicago. it wouldn't have happened without michael bloomberg. i want to say today, you know, hey, mike, great job! we need more people like you who will stand up and fight for the things you believe in and put your own money on the line. what do you say? michael bloomberg. ready to give him some props here? 1-866-55-press. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." for true stories. with award winning documentaries that take you inside the

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this show is about analyzing criticizing, and holding policy are you encouraged by what you heard the president say the other night? is this personal or is it political? a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. staying in tough with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for the middle class. but we do care about them, right? vo: the war room tonight at 6 eastern

>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: 25 minutes after the hour yesterday a strange juxtaposition of events here in washington, d.c. in the united states congress, in the capitol building, president obama stood with the leaders of the two democratic leaders, two republican leaders of the house and the senate and they unveiled this great new statue of rosa parks in statutary hall and paying tribute to the great civil

rights icon. meanwhile, at the very same hour, across the street, the supreme court was taking a first step toward dismantling one of the great civil rights laws of our nation. the voting rights act of 1965. we'll talk about their efforts to dismantle voting rights act in the next half hour here on the "full court press." right now we've been talking about michael bloomberg showing a lot of leadership and being very effective in the fight for new gun safety legislation. he was here in washington yesterday. meeting with the vice president. meanwhile, vice president joe biden went over to the attorney generals of the united states, meeting here in washington, following up on the governor's meeting over the weekend and vice president biden said look at what happened in chicago and know there's a message there that's booming out. >> the voters sent a message last night not just to the nra but to politicians around the country by electing robin kelly

who stood up and stood strong for gun safety, totally consistent with our second amendment rights. >> bill: that became the one issue and it was an issue in a city which has seen far far -- i think has the west murder record now in the country. and has seen far far too many kids mowed down in the crossfire and on the streets of chicago. that became the issue in this congressional race and again michael bloomberg went in. robin kelly, nobody had ever heard of her before. she's up against a former, very popular member of congress, debbie halvorson. debbie 100% rating from the nra. robin kelly saying no, we have to do something about background checks and assault weapons. michael bloomberg put her one on her. she won. joe biden saying it is not just in chicago. across the country people are thinking differently now particularly after newtown about gun safety.

>> the public mood has changed. the excuse that it is too prettily risky to act -- prettily risky to act is no longer acceptable. >> bill: he's absolutely right. i can sense it. you can sense it. every public opinion poll shows that. the public overwhelmingly supports closing the loopholes of the background checks. universal background checks. strongly supports a ban on high-capacity magazines and the majority of americans support a ban on assault weapons. so damn it, there's no better time, let's do it now. good for michael bloomberg. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> go ahead! (vo) current's award winning

original series is back, with a world premiere episode. it's a pretty, little town, with an ugly reputation. >> you just google harrison, what will come up is the klan. i'm all for that. >> the kkk doesn't speak for us at all. it speaks against god. (vo) which side will win the soul of harrison? >> we're never gonna move.

>> announcer: chatting with you live at current.com/billpress. this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: you get is. 33 minutes now after the hour here. it is the "full court press." on a thursday morning february 28th. coming to you live from our nation's capital and brought to you today by the united steelworkers and their international president, leo gerard. good men and women of the steelworkers union. north america's largest industrial union representing over 1.2 million active and retired members. you can get more about their good work at usw.org. here is the big event here in

washington. yesterday in the supreme court justices picking up a case called shelby county versus holder. headline in "the new york times," voting rights law draws skepticism from justices. doug kendall is the founder and the president of the constitutional accountability center here in washington and joins us in studio. hey, doug, good to see you. >> good morning, bill. >> bill: so shelby county, alabama, is challenging the voting rights act which was first adopted signed by lyndon johnson in 1965, renewed again by congress in 2006. >> that's correct. >> bill: so shelby county says what, we should be able to discriminate against blacks if we want to? >> that the south has changed so much we no longer need the voting rights act. it was a good law when passed.

it was needed at that time. they admit freely they were bad actors in 1965 but they argue that oh, now things have changed so much that we no longer need the federal supervision of what we do. >> bill: particularly is -- revolves around section five, correct? as i understand. section five requires what? >> section five requires that places like shelby county which have a long and illustrious history -- nine states states and parts of eight more. parts of 17 states have coverage. places where there is a history of voting rights discrimination have to get what's called preclearance by either the department of justice or a federal court. and what that means is basically they can't just change the voting places right before an election. they can't just change the voting rules. they can't do purges without getting the federal government

to sign off on it. >> bill: how difficult is that? have they had a hard time? >> it is usually a very simple process. it is not a burden at all if you're not trying to discriminate on the basis of race. the way you stop section five from being a burden is by not discriminating or not trying to trick -- pull tricks that disenfranchise minorities. >> bill: now they say, we're good guys now. we don't need -- >> no longer need this law. >> bill: requirement which is not a big burden. has never been a big burden anyhow. >> if they're doing the right thing, it sometimes takes 20 minutes to put in -- >> bill: all right. so what is the evidence that they can't be -- is there evidence that they can't be -- we have made a lot of progress. >> we have made a lot of progress. >> bill: no doubt about it. so now peter is from south carolina. i want to warn you. >> reluctantly. >> bill: south carolina is covered by this, is that correct? >> that is correct. >> bill: so what is the

evidence today that with all of the progress made, we still need this section five? >> i think we saw a lot of evidence just this past election and you had courts, including courts with very conservative judges on them, striking down laws or delaying the implementation of laws in florida where florida was trying to change early voting rules that was prevented by federal court under section 5. texas tried to redistrict in a way that was a violation of the voting rights act. that was prevented by a three-judge panel including a very conservative member of the bench. similarly texas's voter i.d. law which was the most stringent in the country was prevented from going into -- by section five. of the voting rights act. congress also had a lot of evidence that the most egregious violations of the voting rights act were still occurring in the

covered jurisdictions and that was the basis in 2006 with congress re-authorizing the entire act including section five. >> bill: so all of these different states and i think there were 20 some states that tried in various ways to suppress the vote. maybe not all of them were covered states. certainly some of them. >> certainly some of them and certainly section five proved its medal as the last -- >> bill: so they could have gotten away with more if it weren't for section five. >> that's correct. >> bill: how about shelby county alabama? >> shelby county, alabama has -- you know, it's the heart of the voting rights struggle. it is where -- and just recently there is a little town called calera where there's been -- a very aggressive effort just in 2008 to change the rules in midstream and to disenfranchise or to basically get rid of one of the few

african-american-elected representatives from the area. and that was stopped by section five. and this is an area that really has no standing whatsoever to be challenging the continuation of the voting rights act. maybe some county in alaska. that's one of the issues that was before the court yesterday. the court talked a lot about was maybe some places no longer should be covered by section five. but there is a process for that. they can bail out and maybe they can challenge the voting rights act of section five as applied to them. but shelby county is really the last place on earth that has the right to be saying the voting rights act -- >> bill: sonia sotomayor made that point yesterday, if she to the attorney from shelby county. you're the last person that should be up here arguing for -- >> i think they effectively recognize that. that they're not -- they're not the right vehicle. that's one of the ways the court

could conceivably get out of this without striking down the voting rights act is saying that shelby county doesn't have standing -- isn't the right plaintiff to bring this case. >> you were in the court yesterday. correct? >> correct. >> bill: every report i saw about this and everything i've read about it says -- and pete williams including pete williams may be the best person covering the court for nbc, says it is clear that the voting rights -- this section of the voting rights act is doomed clear from the questions asked yesterday by the justices, of course clarence thomas never speaks. but the other four, three conservative and the swing voter, anthony kennedy that there were five votes against section five. did you read -- there were very hostile questions. do you read it that way? >> i don't read it quite that way. i think it is certainly in jeopardy.

there are certainly five votes on the court that could strike down section five of the voting rights act. justice kennedy asked at least a couple of questions that indicated to me that he was at least somewhat in play. he asked questions that were hostile to the voting rights act and certainly suggested he was concerned about the impact on federalism and how we're treating states differently under this law. but he also asked a couple of questions about whether shelby county was the right plaintiff here. whether the act was out. section five could appropriately cover places like shelby county and so in those questions there is at least some hope that he will find a way to say yes instead of say no. >> bill: justice scalia, of course, who is -- as far out there as you can get almost on any issue, he said that this is racial entitlement. >> right. he called the re-authorization of the voting rights act in 2006

the perpetuation of racial entitlement. it is a bizarre -- >> bill: he's got a bassackwards, doesn't he? >> i think one of the reasons i'm hoax justice kennedy will come out on the right way on this case is i don't think he wants to be affiliated with that kind of sentiment which is just -- >> bill: i mean how is it racial entitlement to require cities and counties not to discriminate against people -- the right to vote based on the color of their skin? >> voting is not a racial entitlement. it is an american entitlement. it is one of our most sacred constitutional rights. there are six separate amendments that expand the right to vote. the constitution starting from the preamble is about we the people and about us voting and making sure that we control our government. so the idea that the voting rights act, the most successful civil rights statute we've ever had is the perpetuation of racial entitlement is absurd.

>> bill: doug kendall is our guest, president of the constitutional accountability center on this very important issue of the voting rights act. it is up -- supreme court heard the arguments yesterday. may be months before they decide but as doug told us, that act at least a key element key section of the act is hard to believe that we go back to 1965 and change one of the great steps in the civil rights movement in this country. the voting rights act but that's what's happening here in washington, d.c. your calls, your comments, your questions welcome at 1-866-55-press. or at bpshow on twitter. we'll be right back. >> announcer: this is the "full court press." the "bill press show." live on your radio and on current tv. that i'm going to be the first one to call them out. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets

that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us. going to do the young turks. i think the number one thing that viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. they know that i'm not bs'ing them with some hidden agenda, actually supporting one party or the other. when the democrats are wrong, they know that i'm going to be the first one to call them out. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us.

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>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey 13 minutes before the top of the hour here. doug kendall is in the studio with us, talking about the voting rights act. we're going to talk about the pope's last day on the job with james salt from catholics united coming up at the top of the next hour. but they would never -- they certainly would never consider gutting the voting rights act in this country. we would never do that. we certainly would never do it, doug kendall, on the same day that we unveil a statue to rosa parks. i mean, that was unbelievable. >> timed in a way a lot of members of congress wanted to watch what was happening at the

supreme court had to be -- >> bill: it was right across the street. congress is honoring the civil rights icon and right across the street voting rights, who cares. unbelievable. >> really pretty ironic. >> i hope they position the statue to where rosa parks is staring at the supreme court. >> bill: staring at scalia. what do we have on -- comments on social media? >> we're on twitter at bpshow. you mention rosa parks copeland says remember, it is black history month. sca won't ya and roberts celebrate by taking away minority voting rights protections. ripa says take down section five and the next thing you know, someone in alabama will suggest bringing back cotton and free labor and he says racial entitlement, wait, wasn't that the name of one of the slave ships. find us online at twitter at bpshow. >> bill: i have to ask you about this. so -- and i give mother jones credit for this. this is where i read it.

john roberts has a long history of being an opponent of the voting rights act. when he was working in the reagan white house and back in '82 when the renewal was up, he argued against it. he argued for striking it down. >> he argued for limiting really key section of it. >> bill: he had a thing about the voting rights act. he's wanted to change it. weaken it. abolish it, whatever. for 30 years. and now he's chief justice. shouldn't he have to recuse himself? doesn't he have a real conflict? >> he certainly has been on record about this issue for a very long time. i think we -- going into this case and going -- the court heard this case the same issue about four years ago. so we knew coming into this, people like chief justice roberts were going to be very hard votes to get. and yes, in part because -- >> bill: he's a crusader. he's been a crusader against the voting rights act and now it is

in front of the court and he's presiding over it? >> that was one of the issues that came up and it was a veers one in the confirmation. >> bill: did anybody mention it yesterday? >> no one mentioned what his position -- >> bill: he can't possibly rule fairly on this thing. >> he certainly has been on record for a long time as being an opponent of an expansive voting rights act. >> bill: let's say hello to elaine here in our nation's capital, washington, d.c. >> caller: hi, bill, good morning. >> bill: yes. >> caller: bill, you know the voting rights act is not only about african-americans. the voting rights act is about the right of all americans to vote. >> bill: amen. >> caller: you know, we send young men and women off to die to fight for democracy in other countries, in other lands and here at home, we have politicians that are systemically trying to strip the right to vote from all of us. i think it is just repugnant. i have a quick comment about

justice scalia. he needs to take a page from pope benedict's play book. he needs to resign. >> bill: i think the two of them would be be great in the monastery together. yes, elaine. i appreciate that. she's right. these attempts to suppress the vote last year, now they might have disproportionately affected african-americans depending on where -- but not just african-americans voters. this is the fundamental guarantee of our constitution for all americans. >> that's exactly right. and what we saw in 2012 was exactly why we need the voting rights act. that's one of the things that was before the court yesterday. just the evidence, the recent evidence that this still is a problem. particularly in the covered states. >> bill: overwhelming what they're trying to do in so many different ways. voter i.d. and getting rid of early voting and you couldn't vote on a sunday. now, there again that affects not just african-american voters

but there was the tradition of going to church and then going out to vote. states try to do away with that. >> one of the great shames here is in 2006, the congress overwhelmingly by huge bipartisan majorities, 98-0 in the senate, 390 to 37, i think was the vote in the house of representatives, just overwhelming said how important the voting rights act still is. and that fact kind of bipartisan support for voting rights act is broken down over the last six years and it is one of the real great tragedies in terms of washington becoming more polarized. there should be few things we all agree on more than the right for every citizen to vote. >> bill: it is interesting, of course justice scalia also said well, you can't trust -- if the senate does something unanimously, it is pretty obvious that you can't trust it because they don't know what the hell they're doing. it was worth pointing out he was confirmed to the supreme court by a 98-0 vote.

>> certainly can't trust that. >> bill: in that case, the supreme court sure as ehll did not know what it was doing. any idea when they're going to rule on this? >> this will be one of the last opinions issued this term. so late june. >> bill: reading the court, it looks like it is really up to kennedy. >> i think that's right. >> bill: roberts -- right way on healthcare. >> chief justice roberts has been a very strong opponent of civil rights laws and just -- this is one of the issues he just doesn't seem to get. >> bill: what can people do about this? pray? can't write letters to the congress, i mean to the supreme court, right? >> yeah, this is an issue that you have to raise alarm about. you have to continue to talk about. we have to fight for the voting rights act the way we fought the voter suppression efforts in the fall, we have to continue to support the voting rights act

express its importance and if the court does this, we have to get our working clothes on and fix what we can fix. >> bill: here's something else. do what i did last night. i reread lyndon johnson's speech, march 15, 1965, to the congress, urging them to pass the voting rights act. such a powerful speech. i believe it all over again. doug kendall, thanks for your great work and leadership on this. we'll talk again. thanks for coming in. >> thanks for having me, bill. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

(vo) she gets the comedians laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. (vo) she's joy behar. >>current will let me say anything.

>> announcer: taking your e-mail mails on any topic at any time, this is the "bill press show," live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: congresswoman donna edwards in the next hour as well as the pope. well, not him. talk about him. on judge scalia, jim vespy says as an italian-american born and raised in queens like scalia, i reacted with horror about his racial entitlement comments. he's a bigger embarrassment to italian americans than any cast member of the jersey shore. starting tomorrow, i'm going to start telling people i'm polish. [ laughter ] that's one way. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: hey, what do you say? good morning everybody. welcome to the "full court press" this thursday. february 28th. good to see you today. and we've got lots and lots to talk about because there's a lot of news going on today. today is the last day on the job for benedict xvi as pope. today is the first day on the job for jack lew as our new treasury secretary. he was confirmed yesterday and today is the very last chance that congress has to do something to avoid the sequester it kicks in at either midnight tonight or midnight tomorrow

night. it will be on us unless congress acts. the only question is who is going to get the blame when the cuts start hurting? that and a whole lot more here on today's "full court press." but first we bounce out to los angeles, say good morning to lisa ferguson standing by with today's current news update. hi lisa, take it away. >> good morning, everyone. the house today will cass an upward down vote of its version of the violence against women's act. it has been stalled in congress thanks to disagreements between the two chambers. the house passed a resolution allowing for its consideration. 214 house republicans and all 200 house democrats voted for the rule to allow votes today. only nine congressmen voted against the resolution. all of them male republicans. now, the house's bill heads to a vote. it is not nearly as aggressive as the senate's plan which allows for provisions for lgbt native american and undocumented women. if the house's version fails

today as expected, the senate's bill gets an up-or-down vote. it likely pass and hit the president's desk in the next few days. and some big controversial over the voting rights act now under consideration by the supreme court. according to the act areas with histories of racial discrimination cannot pass new voting laws without first getting approval from the courts. the supreme court heard arguments yesterday leading to quite the racially-charged debate. justice scalia referred to the law as a perpetuation of racial entitlement. sotomayor is leading the liberal justices in defense of the voting rights act asking scalia if he considers the right to vote a racial entitlement. advocates of the act are so far outnumbered, unless they can gain support of justin anthony kennedy. more bill after the break. (vo) it's a vanguard world premiere event. >> go ahead! (vo) current's award winning original series is back, with a

world premiere episode. it's a pretty, little town, with an ugly reputation. >> you just google harrison, what will come up is the klan. i'm all for that. >> the kkk doesn't speak for us at all. it speaks against god. (vo) which side will win the soul of harrison? >> we're never gonna move.

>> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: rosa parks has a new seat on the bus. up-front this time, right in statutary hall in the capitol building. what do you say? it is thursday, february 28th. this is the "full court press." welcome, welcome to the program. good to have you with us today as we boom out to you live on your local progressive talk radio station. and on current tv. if you're listening if you're watching whatever, good to have you with us today. thanks for joining us and get ready. to join in the conversation about the big news of the day. we'll not only tell you what's going on around the country, around the globe, here in our nation's capital we'll give you a chance to sound off about it by phone at 1-866-55-press.

that's our toll free number. or on twitter at bpshow or on facebook. facebook.com/billpressshow. we want to hear what's going on and what these issues mean to you and to your family. good to see you today. it is a busy, busy day. this is the last day congress has to avoid the sequester. it doesn't look like they're going to do anything because republicans in the house at least, they want the sequester. they want it to kick in. they want to gut the military as well as domestic programs. president obama has scheduled a meeting with john boehner and mitch mcconnell and nancy pelosi and harry reid tomorrow, not until tomorrow. tomorrow morning at the white house to see if there's any way as a last-minute measure, that they could at least delay the sequester and avoid it kicking in. doesn't look like that will happen. we've got lots to talk about. we start off this hour talking

about the day. today, the last day for pope benedict xvith. what does that mean for the catholic church in terms of the success, in terms of the direction of the church. and james salt is the executive director of catholics united. good friend of the program. james, good to see you again. >> thanks for having us. >> bill: thanks for coming in to find out the latest intrigue from the vatican. there is a lot going on. >> you don't say. >> bill: more politics than there is inside the full court press. we've got our own sheriff. peter ogborn and dan henning. >> it is pretty shady in here. >> bill: do you have your red slippers on? >> insider politics. >> bill: and phil backert has the phones. cyprian bowlding our videographer on the video cam. before we get into the intrigue in the vatican interesting that a couple of nights ago sean hannity, who generally has just right-wingers on, right agree with his point of view he

invited keith ellison a frequent guest here on our show, often sits in the seat where you are, james invited congressman keith ellison from minnesota on to talk about the sequester played a couple of clips from president obama with some scary music behind it. >> selectively edited. >> and keith ellison wasn't having anything to do with it. here's how that exchange started. >> i guess that's what we can describe as staying on message. something the democratic party i would argue is very good at. let me ask you -- >> good at it, too. >> thank you. >> quite frankly you're the worst excuse for a journalist i've ever seen. >> i'm what? i can't hear you. >> i can't hear you. >> you heard me. [ laughter ] >> that is so good! >> it is good to see someone stand up to sean hannity. >> bill: damn right. >> he seems to get a pass every time. i'm glad someone stood up and said you're not really a journalist. you're a hack for right wing

noise. >> he goes on and on. he just lays him out. we'll put the video up on our facebook page. it is like four minutes of ellison laying him out! >> bill: he says, you violate every standard of journalistic ethics ever. you're nothing but a show for the republican party, all of which is true. somebody said it. and then hannity basically pulled the plug. he won't be back. just like i'll never be back on bill o'reilly's show after i embarrassed him. first and only time i was on that show. you have to stand up to these thugs, bullies. expose them for who they are. we've got lots coming up here today. we'll start off with the pope and james salt and we'll be joined by congresswoman donna edwards from maryland. former senator byron dorgan from north dakota and a new senator from wisconsin tammy baldwin plus from the baltimore ravens, brandon ayanbadejo. i have to start practicing it again.

>> super bowl champ. get it right! >> bill: super bowl camp ayanbadejo who will talk about the nfl scouting mission half they call it. are they asking players really asking players do you like girls or not before they choose them for their team? lots coming up here. starting with the pope but first... >> this is the "full court press." >> a quick check of other headlines making news. in sports, a growing group of major league baseball players want something done about the -- >> are you guys practicing? >> bill: eyen about a -- ayanbadejo. >> it is my two minutes. a growing group of major league baseball players want something done about the league's steroid problem. "usa today" reporting a group of players working with the player's union to get stricter performance-enhancing drugs standards in place mark derosa of the toronto blue jays says it is becoming a tiresome topic. they want cheaters caught and be subject to the harshest

penalties they can be subject to. they hope to have a proposal for big rule changes together in time for the 2014 baseball season. >> bill: finally did something about it. i doubt that they will. >> good luck. good luck. >> seth macfarlane will not host the oscars again. how about an awards show host that everyone likes like tina fey? the actress who cohosted the golden globes to rave reviews said no way to the possibility of hosting. in an interview with "the huffington post" yesterday, she said it is a very hard gig especially for a woman. she has no interest in doing it. >> i think she would crush it. she would be great. >> bill: she would kill. >> you know what i was thinking? how about ellen degeneres has she done it? >> she has done it. she was okay. not memorable. >> i think tina fey -- she's gotta do it. start a white house petition. have the white house force her

to do it. >> there you go. >> bill: all you need is 25,000 signatures. >> abc announced the cast for the new season of "dancing with the stars" this week. it includes a super bowl champion baltimore ravens wide receiver his teammate jacoby jones is known for his touchdown dances. alsoself other athletes including olympic gymnast, gold medalist ally raceman. other wynonna judd and kelly pickler and d.l. huguely among others. >> i'm underwhelmed. >> hey you know, at least phil will be watching because jacoby jones is on there. >> bill: thank you. james, i have to tell you today is the last day for the pope, right? yesterday, everybody said he gave this emotional speech in st. peter's square. peter and i watched it yesterday morning here. it didn't seem very emotional to

me. it seemed pretty flat. but it is remarkable, first time in 500 years or more that we've had a pope resign. so my wife and i were watching last night on the news. she turned to me with all of the stories about the cardinals are there, some are voting and some can't and -- she says, you know, this is as much intrigue -- like we're back in the 14th century. >> that's right. it causes a lot of discussion, a lot of debate. it is actually a very good opportunity for us to talk about what the church should be rather than what it is. it is one of the few moments we have to talk about reform. >> bill: so do you believe that the pope really resigned because of his health or was it because of the financial scandal at the vatican or that he didn't do enough about the priest's abuse scandal or about losses that have been filed that he might be involved in? what's the skinny here? >> we can speculate about his motives. a lot of this is each, of the

issues that you mentioned. especially, i would -- point to the infighting within the curium the scandal of infighting between members of his own team. i think it was the most offensive piece for benedict to have to handle. that, with his age the fact that he was going on these global trips and not able to potentially fill the task. >> bill: his butler stealing his documents, goes to prison. just a whole mess of stuff. so now, the question is when will this -- the conclave open to elect a successor? >> well, the rules used to say it would take nine days from the time of the death of a pontiff or resignation until the college of cardinals could actually vote. benedict just changed the rules before he left. he said it is up to the college of cardinals to decide that. technically, it could be tomorrow. but they're not going to do that. the cardinals will take -- >> bill: we don't know. >> they'll take four or five

days and they'll schedule the conclave to begin. >> bill: all right. so i don't know how many -- what 115? >> 116 and then with o'brien's departure, 115 would be correct. >> bill: o'brien is the cardinal from scotland who resigned after being accused of inappropriate sexual activity with several priests, right? >> amazing story. you know the italian press came out with the suggestion there was a gay mob that was blackmailing the vatican officials and two days later cardinal brian is accused of inappropriate sexual activity and resigns his position. really sets a precedence because remember, there were a lot of cardinals who were saying that the sex abuse scandal is over them like cardinal mahoney we have to go vote. we have to go be part of this conclave. you have cardinal brian who is exposed, i'm not going to vote. it kind of established the

precedence it is up to the individuals. >> bill: it was just the allegations with him. there's been no trial or evidence. he just resigned. i want to come back to cardinal mahoney, american colonel from los angeles. papers, documents released that the court ordered released a couple of weeks ago show that he was very actively engaged in covering up priest abuse scandal, sending priests out of the state, telling them to stay out of the state. if you're back here, you might get in trouble with authorities. not telling the police what was going on. he knew what was going on. he was an agent in the cover-up. why should he be voting for the next pope? >> he shouldn't be. frankly, he brings scandal and shame to catholics by voting in this conclave. the conclave -- >> bill: you really believe he should not be allowed to vote. >> absolutely. this conclave should be an opportunity to celebrate all that's good about catholicism. instead, we're reminded of the since of our leaders and -- sins of our leaders and you're right

general mahoney perpetrated crime. not just sin. he was i believe criminally liable. i think the statute of limitations has expired. niece moral standing to help decide who's going to be the leader of this church going forward. >> bill: so who could -- who could throw him out of the conclave? >> well, technically it is his decision. >> bill: i guess the pope could. >> he could be shamed. >> bill: now there's no pope. >> the college of cardinals could vote and say this is -- certain members are not appropriate for the conclave. but that would be extraordinary. frankly, i think it is up to cardinal mahoney to decide what's good for the church. >> bill: has catholics united called on him to do that? >> we've been running a campaign. we have 10,000 catholics who joined us on a petition that we delivered to his house. >> bill: oh, really? >> in california this past sunday. and it's been a huge story for us. we've been pushing it. because we sat through cardinal

law. remember in 2003er. in boston. and you know, no longer are catholics going to be quietly sitting by, letting scandal perpetrate the church. we're standing up, saying we demand change. we demand accountability. >> bill: now when you look at these 115 cardinals half were appointed by benedict xvi half were appointed by his predecessor, john paul ii. and the two of them in terms of dock tin were right down the -- doctrine were right down the line together. the pope is going to be one of them right? we really can't expect any major changes in the direction of the church or can we? >> well, we're certainly hoping for sister simone campbell. >> bill: she's got my voice. >> unfortunately, she's not of the right gender as per vatican rules. hopefully some day that will change. >> bill: it has to be a priest. therefore has to be a man.

>> correct. >> bill: if is one of these -- we've talked before about -- and i've written about some of the things the church i think has to do something about allowing priests to get married. has to do something about allowing women to be ordained, just for starters. you know, what are the chances we'll get out of this group of 115, a pope who will go in that direction? >> i think your instincts are right that there's a lot of group think going on in the conclave. a lot of folks appointed to positions of authority based on their loyalty to the institution less than their individual ability to lead as a moral person. and i think that's unfortunate. but i have to believe that the spirit can work magic and i can only hope that we get a john xxiii to finish the reforms started 30, 40 years ago.

>> bill: last day on the job for pope benedict xvi. what does it mean for the direction of the catholic church? an important question not just for the church but for the world. we're talking here with james salt, executive director of catholics united. join the conversation. we invite you at 1-866-55-press. today's "full court press," thursday, february 28. we'll be right back. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv. converstion started next. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

(vo) this afternoon, current tv is the place for compelling true stories. >> jack, how old are you? >> nine. >> this is what 27 tons of marijuana looks like. (vo) with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines, way inside. (vo) from the underworld, to the world of privilege. >> everyone in michael jackson's life was out to use him. (vo) no one brings you more documentaries that are real, gripping, current. >> announcer: radio meets television, the "bill press show." now on current tv. >> bill: all right 25 minutes after the hour. make it 26 minutes.

congresswoman donna edwards joining us in the next segment. right now we're talking about a big day. pope has resigned. today is his last day. when i saw this morning some time late this afternoon, he hops on the helicopter, goes off to the pope's summerhouse and he's gone. takes off the red shoes and they'll be sitting there waiting for the next pope. james salt is in studio with us from catholics united. you can find out more about -- maybe sign the petition on cardinal mahoney asking him not to vote in this conclave. catholics-united.org. peter, what's up on the social media? >> couple of comments online at bpshow on twitter. walker says about what about the pope emeritus being involved in child abuse cover-ups. something we talked about. kathy says good riddance, this pope is up to his eyebrows in scandal. and cardinal dolan sat down with "the today show" a couple of moments ago and told savannah

guthrie the chances of him becoming the next pope are about the same as him taking a-rod's place on the yankees. don't expect to see him. >> bill: james i wanted to ask about that. the chance there might be an american. >> yeah, i agree with most pundits that suggest it is very unlikely that the vatican -- the conclave would choose a member of the reigning superpower of the world. it is about geopolitical accountability. if anything, the vatican has lived through empire. and knows when superpowers exert more influence than they deserve. i don't think they want that in the vatican. >> bill: yeah, right. dolan, i think is right on that. just about 45 seconds here, i have to ask you if catholics united like, okay, if you were pope, if you were running the church right what two or three changes would you like to see in the institutional catholic church? >> i think -- i agree that there

needs to be a stronger role for women in the church going forward. too many of my friends are leaving the faith because they have young daughters and they can't raise their family, they can't raise their children in the church where those women don't have an equal say. it is a form impression. second, i make sure we open the priesthood up to married priest. i think it is important that -- there is a shocking shortage of priests serving the lady and i think to help open the floodgates of those who want to serve, allow married priests. >> bill: we'll have to stop it there because we're out of time. james salt, excellent work. thanks for coming in. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

>> go ahead! (vo) current's award winning original series is back, with a world premiere episode. it's a pretty, little town, with an ugly reputation. >> you just google harrison, what will come up is the klan. i'm all for that. >> the kkk doesn't speak for us at all. it speaks against god. (vo) which side will win the soul of harrison? >> we're never gonna move.

>> announcer: chatting with you live at current.com/billpress this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: 33 minutes after the hour now. here we go on the "full court press." getting ahead of myself. good to see you today. thank you for joining us. the "full court press" coming to you live from our nation's capital and our studio on capitol hill brought to you today by the national education association. the good men and women of the nea under president dennis van roekel creating great public schools for every student in america. you bet. you can find out more about their good work at nea.org. busy days here in our nation's capital. with the sequester looming kicks in either tonight or tomorrow. just depends on which clock

you're following. on that and a whole lot of other issues, we are so happy to welcome back into the studio, good friend of ours, representing parts of the state of maryland in the united states congress congresswoman donna edwards. >> thank you. good to see you. >> bill: thanks for coming in. unbelievable juxtaposition yesterday of events in the united states capitol building and the supreme court across the street. in the capitol the leaders of congress gathering to unveil a new statue in statutary hall to the great civil rights eye -- icon, rosa parks. here is president obama yesterday. >> obama: a single moment with the simplest of gestures, she helped change america and change the world. >> bill: she did indeed. >> she really did. and you know, and such a role model and a quiet heroine in so

many ways. we honor her on one hand by dedicating statue in statutary hall for rosa parks. she would be 100 years old. and then just around the corner, down -- actually across the street. across the street in the united states supreme court the court is set poised perhaps to strike down the voting rights act. the section of voting rights act that really does protect the interest of so many millions of americans in you know, states that have been greatly troubled by their history on civil rights. and they're poised to strike it down. >> bill: this is an act signed into law originally by lyndon johnson. rosa parks was there standing alongside of him when he signed the voting rights act into law in 1965, remember newed by congress -- renewed by congress twice in 1982 and most recently in 2006. now, congresswoman we hear a

lot about activist judges and these are five members of the supreme court who are saying we don't care if the senate unanimously renewed this in 2006, we're going to change it. didn't republicans used to complain about activist judges? >> well, they did and not just that. we're talking about 50 years of law on the books that this activist court is poised to overturn. 50 years of law. i was 5 years old at the time. i have been the greatest beneficiary and the people of my generation, the greatest beneficiary of the courage of rosa parks and of what lyndon johnson and that courageous congress did to put in place the voting rights act. >> bill: right. and that we would undo it. because i have a question on this. so is this brought by shelby county alabama as justice sotomayor said, maybe the last people who should have brought this case.

they argue that that was then, this is now. the times have changed. yeah, we needed that law then. which requires them to come to -- if they want to change anything to do with how people vote in their jurisdiction, they have to come to washington first and say here is a change we want to make. washington approves it or doesn't. so nine states are under that little requirement. they're saying you can trust us now. we changed totally. there's no more discrimination or racism in the south. >> it isn't just those nine states because it is true that nine states are covered by section five of the voting rights act but it then becomes the benchmark, the standard by which the other states do their redistricting and their rule making around elections. so if you take away that standard you take away the floor. it really puts in jeopardy the voting rights of millions of americans. yesterday, the argument describing votes rights, the

right to vote, we all understand and common parlance says the right to vote is an entitlement. >> bill: racial entitlement. that's what justice scalia said. >> how insulting it is to all of those who put their lives on the line and did as rosa parks did but also died in support of voting rights for all americans and that that has been then the bellwether for voting rights, not just for african-americans but for all discriminated against minorities. >> bill: indeed for every american. it is just shocking to me that they do it even -- take up the case let alone challenge it. but it is also shocking to me, congresswoman, that we could actually -- and it looks like, see these draconian cuts from the sequester go into -- happen tonight or tomorrow and congress -- republicans in

congress do nothing about it. >> not just that but they're going home today. and so they're going to allow these -- >> bill: so there's no way -- >> that's right. they can't act tomorrow. you know, look, it is bad enough. you described us as being busy this week. i would argue with that. we started out the week. we had a couple of adjournment votes. we had a couple of journal votes, that is voting on what we did for the day which was nothing. and then we named a couple of buildings -- >> bill: there you go. >> today we're going to pass the violence against women act after months of inaction by republicans and particularly house republicans. and tomorrow, all of those shelters and services and programs head start programs, early start programs, teachers in classrooms for kids with disabilities, all of that stuff gets a sledgehammer when this sequester takes us out. >> bill: going -- so recessing today, right means if there were -- people change their mind

and said we really can't let this happen tomorrow. they're not going to be here to vote. >> what a job. you can recess today after working, supposedly working four days, having not worked for two weeks. >> can i get one of those jobs? >> just to make that very clear there is no way that we're going to avoid the sequester. >> there's no way because congress republicans in congress have said we're going home. they control the gavel. they can keep us in. or they can let us go home. guess what. today they're going to let us go home. >> bill: what is your response to speaker boehner who says why should we have to do anything? we passed two bills last year. right? so we've done our job. we passed two bills last year. now it is up to the president and the senate to act. >> well, his job and the job of all of us is not just a to pass two bills because you have the majority. it is to make sure the president can sign a bill that you pass. and we haven't done that.

the republicans have actually made no attempt to really negotiate this. to present a fair approach. they don't even take into consideration, you know, billions in cuts that have actually been made up until this point. they want to make more cuts. this time they want to do it by this across the board draconian, arbitrary cuts to programs and services that benefit millions of people across the country without even looking at the dirty details. >> bill: isn't there another -- maybe it is technical, but very real problem with what john boehner is saying about we passed two bills last year. different congress right? >> it was a completely different congress. >> bill: whatever happened last year isn't relevant at all this year, right? >> we go from one congress to the next congress. we don't get to say well, we did that last year so therefore we have to do nothing this year? i mean that is his position.

we did this last year. and last congress so we don't have to do anything now. well, that's not how governing works. >> bill: be clear. whatever they passed last year, whatever it is, it has no standing in the new congress, correct? >> none. none. >> bill: so the fact -- totally meaningless to say we did this last year. one of our listeners this morning said i would like him to come into my e.r. if he has a heart flood and say no, we treated that last year. you came in with the same thing last year. come on. what are you talking about? >> no new start. >> bill: it is insane. >> it really is. >> bill: they want this to happen, don't they? >> oh, it is very clear to me walking around and talking collective on the floor, you can see that they want it to happen. and you know, what menis. that's what they are they're meanies. it will have a harsh effect. the president has outlined various ways this could hurt

every single community. i'm not just talking about domestic violence and shelters and programs that are lifelines for women and children who are experiencing domestic violence. but it is also regional airports, it is our meat inspection and food inspection system. are we just going to let food sit on -- in warehouses because we don't have enough inspectors out there because they're on furlough? it also goes to cuts to our legislative branch as well. and so you know, we're dealing with a set of people who really hate government. so the idea that they're going to -- in effect, not shut it down but so drastically reduce services to the american people that it is the most ineffective government you can have, that's their fault. >> it is their fault. they think they can get away with it by blaming president obama or that the american people will say it is too bad but this is stuff we've got to do. we'll find out. congresswoman donna edwards in here talking sequester.

you heard it here. she told us there's no way to avoid it. it is going to happen. what's it mean to you? 1-866-55-press. today's "full court press." >> announcer: on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." are you encouraged by what you heard the president say the other night? is this personal or is it political? a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. staying in tough with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for the middle class. but we do care about them, right? vo: the war room tonight at 6 eastern

i think the number one thing that viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us. >> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: here we go. 13 minutes now before the top of the hour. congresswoman donna edwards in studio with us. in the next hour, two united

states senator former united states senator byron dorgan from north dakota and the newest senator, one of the newest senators from the state of wisconsin, senator tammy baldwin. great to have her in the senate. talking to her next. >> yesterday, i saw her on camera at a hearing and it really took me by surprise. it was great to see. >> bill: 20 women in the united states senate right now. >> i love it. >> bill: we're talking several issues voting rights act in the supreme court yesterday. the sequester is going to happen. president obama has a meeting with the leadership of congress tomorrow. either the day it kicks in or the day after it kicks in to see if there's still some way they can avoid it. if they come back to work next week. you have next week off by the way? >> no. next week is a work week but if it's any indication, we could do that work in about a day and a half. >> bill: if that. >> peter, what's happening? >> we're on twitter at bpshow at

bpshow. rich dahl says that's the problem. john boehner not doing his job. he could put up a bill to stop the sequester today to stop the drama. he's not doing his job. however we did just find out this morning, john boehner has been booked on "meet the press" on sunday. sitting down with david gregory. he doesn't have time to get the sequester stuff done but he has time to do media this weekend. >> bill: he will be able to tell the senate they have to get off their ass. >> that's been the strategy as though somehow the house which actually has a body that's supposed to originate spending bills has no responsibility. and he's wrong about that. it isn't just that the house has responsibility. he has the responsibility as the speaker to bring it forward. >> bill: i saw scott pelley did an interview from cbs news with john boehner and scott pelley asked him you keep saying the president has to show some leadership on this issue or

harry reid does. how about you? you're the top republican in the congress. don't you have to show some leadership? and his answer was oh, we passed two bills last year. coming back to where we were. before we move on, let's say a quick hello to joey out in chicago. hey, joey, what do you say? >> caller: good morning, everybody. there's no way you can blame obama and the democrats. if anybody thinks so, you should be wrapped in bubble wrap because you're too dumb to walk around without hurting yourself. when i was growing up, there was one crisis every decade. tea partiers are way out of their element. they're amateurs and they're going to ruin this country. there is no way they can blame this on the democrats. no way no how. >> bill: all right. joey we've got your point. but i want to -- one thing -- joey is one of our favorite listeners out there. very outspoken as you can see congresswoman.

but he does make a point. that there's been crisis after crisis after crisis to the point, i think the american people have sort of a case of crisis fatigue. >> it does numb you. even the words we use sequestration, what in the world does that mean? but it is going to become apparent what it means because it really -- these budget cuts have real life impact. >> bill: this time, it's for real. >> this time it is for real. if you look at the calendar, it is hard to imagine, we get to sequester tomorrow and there's the continuing resolution at the end of the month. it is actually hard to imagine for the month you would cut a deal on sequester but then not deal with continuing resolution and so i really do see this playing out for quite some time. and people will feel it. they'll feel it -- in the classrooms. they'll feel it with the attrition programs. they'll teal it with cuts to

services and it will be felt throughout the economy. unfortunately, who will feel it the most? women. >> bill: yesterday, i was there with arne duncan, secretary of education. he told us that first of all this idea that there's all kinds of flexibility. they can just move money around, that's not true. it is simply not true. the sequester is very precise as to what -- how the cuts have to occur. so just in one area. for preschool 70,000 kids losing access to preschool. 40,000 teachers or teacher's aides losing their jobs. >> this is real. and when you think about you know, the nation's children who are children who go to school every day with disabilities, all of the services are going to be wiped out. this is very -- this is really devastating. so real people, in my district, where we have dual income households of contractors and federal employees we'll have two people in a household who won't be able to pay their mortgage because they won't have

a paycheck. >> bill: about 30 seconds. you mentioned violence against women act. it will pass the house today. >> the irony is we'll pass a senate version which we could have passed last year and didn't. so now we're going to pass the violence against women act. but as soon as it passes, just hours later $29 million in across-the-board cuts to domestic violence shelters and programs. 230,000 victims calling hot lines that will go unanswered and no doubt lives will be lost because that's what happens when you don't answer crisis calls. victims of domestic violence, 3500 shelters and programs across this country that are going to see devastating cuts when they're already operating on the margin. so you know, one hand taketh -- giveth what the other hand taketh away. in this case, we'll pass the violence against women act which could have been done months ago and then you're going to take away the funding for shelters and programs. >> bill: ridiculous. >> they think there's no war on women?

don't believe that. >> bill: congresswoman donna edwards, glad you're there fighting the good fight. >> good to be with you. >> bill: thanks for keeping it up. i'll tell you what the president is up to today. on his schedule. here on the "full court press." >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. people call me about this every day. my dishwasher must be broken. you know, it's not always the machine. it may be the detergent. add finish power up to boost your detergent and you'll see a huge difference. watch what it can do. look at that sparkle! now that's clean! cloudiness! spots! tough stains! even dishwasher build-up! gone! just like that! so don't give up. add finish power up. wow! see the difference! it's a must have!

>> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> with a distinctly satirical point of view. if you believe in state's rights but still believe in the drug war you must be high. >> only on current tv. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: all right. how about this for a line-up. in the next hour, former senator byron dorgan from north dakota has a great big new energy plan he's pushing. senator tammy baldwin gotta

love -- god, i love saying that, senator tammy baldwin from wisconsin on sequester and other issues facing the united states senate. and brendan ayanbadejo who is, of course, the baltimore ravens linebacker, thank you. i knew it wasn't the quarterback:here about the latest questions the nfl may be raising about the sexual orientation of some of the new players. all of that coming up. president obama today gets the daily briefing then he has lunch with the vice president. those are the only two public events on his schedule. press briefing at 12:30 with jay carney in the briefing room and i will be there representing all of you. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: good morning,er. good to see you today. it is thursday, february 28. welcome to the "full court press," coming to you to every corner of this great land of ours. taking your calls at 1-866-55-press. it is a big day. a big day for several reasons. it is a big day because this is the last day for benedict xvi to be on the job as pope. today is the first day for jack lew to be on the job as treasury secretary. today is the last day before the sequester kicks in and looks like, for sure you just heard donna edwards tell us, congress is going home today.

the house is going home today so the sequester is going to happen. there is no way to avoid it. this is also a big day because this is lisa ferguson's last day here at current tv. it has been great working with you, lisa. you've done a great job. thanks for being part of our show. we will now turn it over to you for today's current news update. take it away, lisa. nice to work with you. >> thank you, bill. it has been my pleasure. it has been great to work with you, too. great to bring you all the news every day. president obama is facing a deadline on weighing in on california's proposition 8. the prop declares marriage valid only between a man and a woman. it was a big disappointment for gay marriage supporters but it is seeing challenge in the supreme court. this could be a landmark moment for lgbt rights, especially if the president voices his opinion today. it is his last chance to file a friend of the court brief showing his support for gay marriage. so far, obama said the federal

government cannot deny marriage benefits to gay couples but as recently as last week, he has refused to say whether those same rules stand for the states. if the supreme court does overturn prop 8, it would pave the way for other states to get rid of their own defense of marriage style amendments. the first lady has an op-ed in the "wall street journal" today celebrating the growing sales of healthy foods. mrs. obama is on a three-state let's move tour right now, focusing on boosting physical activity and healthy eating in kids. the first lady is making ending childhood obesity a big part of her legacy. last year, she pushed for federal legislation requiring healthier lunches in schools. in state's op-ed she says companies like disney, walmart and walgreens are all achieving greater success by creating and selling healthier products. more bill is up next. stay with us. (vo) it's a vanguard world premiere event. >> go ahead! (vo) current's award winning original series is back, with a

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>> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: rosa parks has a new seat, a new seat on the bus and this one is right up front. good morning everybody. what do you say? it is thursday, february 28th. last day of february. good to see you today. thank you for joining us. it is the "full court press." and we are live on your local progressive talk radio station. how lucky you are if you've got one. and on current tv, bringing up to date on the big stories of the day and most importantly taking your calls and your comments at 1-866-55-press. lots to talk about. you can give us a call at 1-866-55-press or give us your comments on twitter at bpshow. join us on facebook. friend us on facebook at

facebook.com/billpressshow. what fun to welcome back into the studio, good friend of ours, joined us many times when he was a member of the united states senate. we still like talking to former senator, byron dorgan from north dakota. i think i can call you byron now. >> i'm still going to call him senator. >> you could call me byron then even. >> bill: thank you for coming in today. we have our regular team here. you know peter ogborn and dan henning. >> good morning, byron. >> bill: no, you say senator. have a little respect here. phil backert's got the phones. cyprian bowlding on the video cam. byron, i know you were busy last night watching your local favorite sports team, the wizards. up against the pistons and right at the end it looked like it had happened -- >> had a chance to win. they had a shot. they got a clear shot at the

basket. >> bill: steve whose signature call is dagger when they score. he sees the shot for a three-pointer and he calls it. >> from the baseline for three. the wizards are a miraculous pullback. >> they're saying it did not go. >> bill: say it did not go. they saw the net move. what did it look like on the screen? >> it looked like a three-point shot. >> it looked like it. it didn't touch the rim. it hit the bottom of the net. so it kind of flicked the net. but what was interesting is he says daggers if the wizards won but the wizards players were glum walking off the court slowly. if they won, they would put their arms up and smile a little bit. it was strange.

>> bill: so they retracted the dagger. >> they took the dagger away. >> retract the dagger. >> bill: are the wizards still -- >> they're on a hot streak. >> they're better. >> that's a good way to put it. they're not one of the best teams in the nba but they had the worst start of anybody. >> bill: very won four in a row. >> last night, i watched seth curry make 54 points in madison square garden. unbelievable. >> he went off last night. i didn't know you were a basketball fan. i'm the resident basketball fan. >> anything you can catch or throw. >> bill: senator dorgan here with us. we'll be joined by. >>senator: tammy baldwin later in the hour as well as bran dan ayanbadejo from the baltimore rayeens to talk about the latest nhl picks -- nfl picks. senator, i want to talk about that. first, dan has the big stories of the day.

>> well, senator, i don't know if you were ever casual when you were at work in the senate but speaker john boehner has taken to the house floor to remind the representatives of how decorum in a speech, specifically on dress code. he said members should wear appropriate business attire during all sittings of the house "you know who you are." politico reporting that members of congress have been a little more lax lately seen on the floor in jeans and baseball jerseys among other casual wear. it happens most often during the first vote of the week when members are just traveling back into washington from their home districts. speaker boehner not happy. >> unacceptable. >> i'm much more interested in whether they pass good legislation than whether they dress well but decorum is kind of important on the floor of the house. >> bill: it has always been the tradition. >> it has. >> bill: you were in the house. >> i showed up there when tip o'neil was speaker of the house. there are certain rules. you follow the rules. >> bill: and pass good

legislation. >> one would hope. >> that's the reason you come back here is to pass good legislation. >> the netflix political drama "house of cards" has become very popular very fast, so much so it has caught the attention of the white house. politico reporting that obama adviser valerie jarrett has invited an actress to the white house for a visit. she plays chief of staff vass qwest on the show and places her character on miss jarrett. no word on when she will visit. >> this is the new west wing isn't it? >> bill: peter downloaded it for my on my ipad but i haven't watched it. >> gotta watch it. >> you have to live stream it, right? i'm flying to san diego tomorrow i can't watch it on the plane. >> if they have wi-fi, you can watch it. >> delta has wi-fi on the plane. >> bill: i'm going united.

>> finally in hollywood troubled actress lindsay lohan has a plan for what she wants to do next. >> bill: don't we have a ban on lindsay? >> she wants to become a motivational speaker. >> i thought she was going to try to be pope. >> nope. as a condition to satisfy her probation violation, she wants to visit schools and hospitals to give inspirational talks and abc reports she wants to participate in a psa campaign as well. >> she might want to try that on "saturday night live." >> she could be great. she could say look at what i've become. don't do what i did. like the scared straight program. >> bill: byron, last time i saw you was monday night. you and former senator kent conrad now sponsoring a little reception to welcome the new senator from north dakota, senator heidi heitkamp to washington. it was a wonderful event and tell us about it. she is -- i was very impressed. i never met her before. she's a real powerhouse.

>> she's something. she's very smart. very motivated. she will be a great senator. interestingly, in north dakota, i became state tax commissioner at age 26. when i left -- >> bill: you were not appointed. >> i filled a vacancy but then when i left that job kent conrad became state tax commissioner. >> bill: but he ran. elected office. >> that's right. when he left, heidi heitkamp became state tax commissioner of north dakota. all three of us made it to the united states senator from that perch as state tax commissioner in north north dakota. it is an elected position which is unusual. >> bill: if you want to become a united states senator from north dakota, how do you explain -- then you know how to get there. how do you explain the fact that heidi heitkamp won. she's a new democratic united states senator from north dakota and president obama lost the state by 22, 23 points? >> well, north dakotans are

notorious ticket splitters. first time i won for the u.s. house of representatives was 1980. ronald reagan carried north dakota in a huge landslide. so people were on the republican side of the ticket voting for ronald reagan, came back over in large part, voted for me. i won with 57% that year. north dakotans are ticket splitters. they take a look at the candidate much more so than the party. although i must admit only two presidential candidates, two democratic presidential candidates in 100 years have gotten the votes of north dakota. they traditionally vote republican for president. but other than that, they're very choosy and they want someone they can trust someone they like and heidi heitkamp ran a great campaign. she will be a terrific senator. >> bill: you have been out of the senate now for two years. among other things, you're writing novels. and you have another one coming out. you've been working with a bipartisan policy center, particularly on the energy

issue. and releasing your recommendations yesterday. to the congress and the president. what are you suggesting? what's the plan? >> as you know, it is very hard to pass any legislation, let alone big piece of legislation on issues that matter like energy. the last energy bill that was passed was in 2007. people go to the gas pumps are paying high prices these days. the price of oil is $90 to $100 a barrel even though we're producing more and demand is down. that's because it's priced internationally. so the question is what kind of an energy policy can we have that could pass a congress, that seems in gridlock but could pass on a bipartisan basis? we've put together something we worked for two years on it. we think represents the best interest of the country and it is -- you know, all of the above but all of the above in the right way. yes, let's produce more oil and gas and it is good news that we're doing that. let's also produce more renewable energy, biofuels, wind

and solar. and especially let's continue investing in research which will give us tomorrow's energy sources as well. so this is a really good, thoughtful plan that i hope will be the basis for some legislation in congress. >> bill: are there other former members of congress who are part of the group? >> just one. >> bill: are there any republicans? >> senator trent lott was the cochair of the project with me. and then general jim jones and former e.p.a. administrator bill riley and then we have an advisory group of to people, mostly ceos but from every part of the spectrum from environmental groups to oil companies. we had everybody there. it was a two-year process and you know, look, the one thing that all of us understand about energy is we get up in the morning, we use energy all day long and don't think about it. i often tell the story about when john john glenn circled the earth, i had a chance to ask him about this. i asked him if he saw the lights of australia when he went on the

dark side of the planet because they had turned all of the lights on. he send when he was up in capsule called freedom 7 i looked down and saw the bright lights of perth australia. interesting to me an astronaut flying above the earth sees the evidence of human life represented by our use of energy. energy is critically important. we need to get it right. there's some good news but we need to do a lot better on energy. >> bill: it was one of your passions, one of your driving issues in the united states senate. we talked about it at the time. if you were in this -- i don't know whether the senate gets to vote on this but what about the keystone pipeline? >> i happen to think it is going to get built and i support it. the fact is canada is going to develop its resources. they will either move them to the west coast and to asia or move them in the keystone pipeline south. i would prefer it come south. >> bill: but if we're going to move away from fossil fuels isn't this kind of the time to do it?

doesn't this perpetuate our dependence on fossil fuels? >> the point is canada is going to produce anyway and if they're going to produce that product we all want them to produce it in a way that is least harmful to the economy. we're going to continue to use fossil energy in the foreseeable future but let's build other opportunities in renewables. there's so many exciting things going on in energy. and that will be renewable and clean. national clean energy standard that every state has to hit. let's do things that drive our future toward lower carbon energy input and a greater stability and more security because you know, we still have 45% of the oil that we use coming from outside of our country. >> bill: carol and i built a new house in california all solar, solar house. it is fantastic. we have no heating no cooling. it works.

we have a wood stove in the winter to take the chill off. but the potential for solar and wind is just incredible. >> absolutely. thomas edison and harvey firestone and ford were visiting one day and talking about energy and edison said i'll put my money on the sun. so will i in the long-term. >> bill: i want to also ask you all of the above. does that include nuclear? >> yes. but we're not going to see so much nuclear. there will be some amount of nuclear bill, not much. and there's going to be, in our future, different kind of nuclear that doesn't cause the kind of waste that we see now. but you know, it is very costly per kilowatt hour. i don't think we'll see as much of it. all of the above does mean all of the above but with special emphasis on low carbon and clean energy. >> bill: that's been the president's focus, too. you talk about research. in just about every speech, he makes the argument to continue

to invest in new research and expanding that direction. former senator byron dorgan of north dakota here in studio with us. he's used to taking slings and arrows. your calls and questions welcome here. 1-866-55-press. you don't have to agree with him on everything. but you want to get in the conversation, give us a call. we'll be right back on the "full court press." >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. (vo) she's joy behar. >>current will let me say anything. the bar harbor bake is really worth trying. [ male announcer ] get more during red lobster's lobsterfest. with the year's largest selection of mouth-watering lobster entrees. (vo) she gets the comedians laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. (vo) she's joy behar. >>current will let me say anything.

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john fugelsang: if you believe in states rights but still support the drug war you must be high. cenk uygur: i think the number one thing viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. i think the audience gets that i actually mean it. michael shure: this show is about being up to date so a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. joy behar: you can say anything here. jerry springer: i spent a couple of hours with a hooker joy behar: your mistake was writing a check jerry springer: she never cashed it (vo) the day's events. four very unique points of view. tonight starting at 6 eastern. >> announcer: radio meets television, the "bill press

show" now on current tv. >> bill: 25 minutes after the hour. it is the "full court press." peter ogborn's following you on the social media on twitter and on facebook. former senator byron dorgan in studio with us. senator, we've got to ask you we have a new secretary of defense. you served with chuck hagel. how do you think he will do? >> i think he will do well. chuck is a friend. he was a republican. i was a democrat. he served for 12 years of the 18 years i served in the senate. i think he's smart. he's capable. he knows defense and foreign policy issues. you know, here is a guy that fought on the battlefield, earned two purple hearts and was hectored during his nomination. you know, i thought what happened to him was pretty thoughtless in this process. >> bill: he was badly treated by his fellow republicans. unfairly, i believe. >> these are people who worked with him 12 years. he would go to their caucus once a week. presumably, all friend and acquaintances and i think for

political reasons, he took it on the chin during that process. but he's now there and he's going to be a good secretary of defense in my judgment. >> bill: do you think he can repair -- mend his fences? >> i do. chuck is smart and capable and i think he will do well. >> bill: if he were in the senate today, how would you vote on the sequester? what do you think the senate should do about the sequester? >> well, you know, onward through the fog here kind of. the sequester it is an assault on common sense. it is very thoughtful. but it was set up during this process at the start of the year. as you know, kind of a barrier that was so stupid that you would never go through the barricade for it. let's set up something that would be so dumb that you can't get past it. but you know, i think they've underestimated what's going on on capitol hill these days. >> bill: underestimated the

stupidity of the tea party. >> it is a side show. what we really need to do is we do need to have a big solution to where we're headed. and that -- we had simpson-bowles and various plans. but there's no discussion about the big issue these days. part of it is the significant part, i think is that speaker boehner has a caucus in the house that he has no control over. he's already demonstrated that. that's too bad. so he can't produce a house for the kind of remedies that are necessary. and so you know, but this country needs leadership and this country needs a bigger, better solution going forward. and it doesn't appear that's what's going to happen. >> bill: you mention simpson-bowles but everybody who has looked at it, has said this big solution has to combine both spending cuts and revenue and everybody believes that except the tea partiers and then john boehner goes along with them.

>> this is a puzzle where some people, including the tea parties and others have taken pieces away and say now put the puzzle together. you can't. the pieces are missing. it requires everything to be on the table to address this issue. our country will do fine if it has some good leadership. >> bill: i'll tell you byron senator, it is good to know you're still out there, still plugging away on the important issues of the day. we need your voice and your leadership. so keep it up. >> good to be with you. >> bill: thanks for giving us some of your time today. >> any time you call, bill. >> bill: when is the new novel out? >> july. >> bill: we'll talk to you before then. gridlock. >> but it is not about the political -- not about energy. >> bill: we'll be right back with senator tammy baldwin coming up next. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

world premiere episode. it's a pretty, little town, with an ugly reputation. >> you just google harrison, what will come up is the klan. i'm all for that. >> the kkk doesn't speak for us at all. it speaks against god. (vo) which side will win the soul of harrison? >> we're never gonna move.

>> announcer: chatting with you live at current.com/billpress this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: here we go. 33 minutes after the hour now. it is the "full court press." we're coming to you live coast-to-coast from our studio on capitol hill. booming out to you on your local progressive talk radio station and on current tv. in every corner of this great land of ours. well depending on whose clock you're paying attention to, it is either midnight tonight or midnight tomorrow night, there is a dispute about exactly when the sequester kicks in. but it looks like it will kick in unless today something can happen in the senate and then move over to the house. we want to check on that and a whole lot of other issues. with a good friend of the program and a very, very excited

new member of the united states senate, from the state of wisconsin, we strongly supported her so did all of you as she joins us now senator tammy baldwin. >> good morning. great to join you. >> bill: congratulations. >> thank you. >> bill: let's start with this week, chris christie made news when he became the eighth republican governor to support the expansion of medicaid here in new jersey. good deal for taxpayers of new jersey. if it's good for the taxpayers of new jersey, why isn't it good for the taxpayer of wisconsin senator? >> well, that's the question we've all been asking because our governor announced last week he's rejecting medicaid expansion for our state. and i've concluded that it appears to be a political decision. not a sound policy decision. it just doesn't add up. if you think about the fact that significant number of

wisconsinites, the most vulnerable will be getting inferior health coverage, we are forgoing about $10 billion of federal funding over a long period of time for the most vulnerable people in our state. and it is going to cost state taxpayers more for this alternative that our governors proposed which again is wholly inadequate. but you know, there is a pattern here. few months before that, our governor rejected prospect of putting together a state insurance exchange. and punted it to the federal government where we won't have the opportunity to make it as specific to our needs in wisconsin. and prior to that, the governor asked our state attorney general to join the lawsuit. trying to bring down the affordable care act. so it is act after act.

and there is a pattern developing here which is why i think this is politics and not doing what's right for the people of the state. and it is really time -- it's overdue, to start working together and start making the affordable care act work for the people of wisconsin. >> bill: it is interesting that scott walker joins bobby jindal and bob mcdonnell from virginia and --endle from louisiana and mcdonnell from virginia and rick perry from texas, three other governors who it seems are playing politics on this issue. so on the sequester senator is there -- will there be any action in the senate today on this issue to try to head off the sequester? >> yes there will be. we're spending the day in terms of preparation it's been the last several weeks to put together something that is

balanced to avert the arbitrary across the board, very damaging cuts. but economists have told us we'll greatly reduce our growth in the country over the year to come. and will lead toker the unemployment of up to two million people nationwide. i mean it is staggering when you look at what's being -- what we're being warned about. so it's also high time that we stop living crisis to crisis, fiscal cliff to fiscal cliff and so the senate -- democrats are proposing a balanced package that relies on a combination of smart spending cuts, very targeted closing some wasteful corporate tax loopholes and subsidies and making sure that everyone does their fair share

in this situation including the buffett rule is part of our package. i highlight that since last session, i authored the buffett rule in the house of representatives. now i'm working with sheldon whitehouse in the senate to make that a piece of our solution to this problem. >> bill: so it is part -- it will be part of the senate bill passed today, do you believe? >> it will be. and you know, it's part of our strategy to say we've got to have balance as we move forward and you know, it recognizes that our country faces two challenges. getting our economy back on track and responsibly reducing our deficit. so we have to make sure that everyone has a fair shot and that everyone does their fair share. that's what the buffett rule is all about. >> bill: absolutely is all about. senator tammy baldwin from wisconsin, our guest here on our news line this morning on the

"full court press." senator, we learned earlier today on the show from congresswoman donna edwards that john boehner has said congress is going home today. they're done. they're not going to be here tomorrow so even if the senate acts today the house won't be here to act tomorrow. so we're going see the sequester, aren't we? >> you know, i fear that will be the case. i was beginning to predict that in the last couple of weeks having heard speaker boehner make several comments about not being willing to negotiate and -- but i think when it takes effect and people begin to see its effects there will be an even louder insistence as house members go home and hear from their constituents. but they return and get something done. so i fear as most do, it will go into effect but hopefully just for a few days, maybe a week or

two and then some common sense is grabbed in the house of representatives. >> bill: particularly because within a month -- it may take until the first of april for the cuts to be felt. but they are real and they will cause real pain. >> we were talking about living from crisis to crisis which is frustrating so many americans. here is another crisis looming. that's march 27th when the -- what's known as the continuing resolution that's funding our government expires. that could be a government shutdown. so you have the furlough notices that are going out now. you have all of this -- i think we are -- what i hope is that this month we make a commitment to stop living crisis to crisis and get back to governing and budgeting the way the federal government is supposed to and that requires some leadership and that's what we're going to do today in the senate and we're going to continue to do but we

need a partner over in the house. >> bill: on another issue and this is an issue you've been out on front on, senator the violence against women act finally comes up for a vote today in the house of representatives. could have done it months ago. they're doing it today. it looks like we'll see that pass and sent to the president right? >> it looks very encouraging and you know, there's been a couple of breakthroughs recently where gridlock was reached last session. and let's hope that that -- let's hope that that's a sign of hope. >> bill: right. maybe apply the same coming together on other issues that they did on the violence against women. too bad it took so long to get there. before we let you go, i want to ask you yesterday, it was very interesting, a couple of days ago, i'm talking about marriage equality now and this big case, two cases in front of the supreme court. few days ago 80 leading

republicans came out and signed an amicus brief in front of the supreme court saying you have to overturn doma. yesterday, a whole group of major corporations from the biggest names in corporate america, microsoft apple and a lot of others, those corporations filed a brief with the supreme court saying this is bad for business. not to support marriage equality. it looks like, senator the tide's turning here in terms of public opinion. >> absolutely. i have seen a study -- growth and support for marriage equality and opposition to discrimination. just in -- during my time in the house and these pieces of news and my early days in the senate are very heartening. you know, i still recall the interview that our president gave last year talking about how

his views and opinions have changed and i think that this is happening throughout the country and it is not partisan. you're hearing from, as you said 80 plus prominent republicans who are now saying that marriage equality is -- proposition 8 should be overturned. that doma should be repealed. and it's -- i think reflective of the opinions of the country. unfortunately, as this -- these cases play out we still have speaker boehner sort of leading the effort to defend doma. and spending taxpayer dollars for attorneys to do so. he's sort of out of the mainstream now. >> bill: yeah. that's amazing. how public opinion has changed on this. senator, you're busy on many fronts. >> yes indeed. >> bill: you jumped right into all of the important issues.

that's great. great to have you in the united states senate. thanks for joining us today. look forward to seeing you in studio one of these days. >> i look forward to it. thank you so much. >> bill: senator tammy baldwin. exciting new senator from wisconsin. when we come back, brendan ayanbadejo from the baltimore ravens on maybe a little moment faux phobia in the nfl. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. just be grateful current tv does not come in smellivision. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

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current tv is the place for true stories. with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines. real, gripping, current. documentaries... on current tv. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: 13 minutes before the top of the hour. back to the issues of the day

here in just a second. but boy, i saw this -- sends chills up my spine. you would think worry about identity theft if somebody's already behind bars, you don't have to worry about them. not the case. out of ohio, this story a woman sentenced to 24 months in prison for helping a county jail prisoner commit identity theft. she was feeding him information on people's personal information about social security number and date of birth et cetera. he was using that to open up charge accounts and credit card accounts in their names and buying goods from his prison cell. oh, my god. stories like that, again shows you how identity theft is everywhere. you should be protected against it as i am. with lifelock ultimate. the most comprehensive i.d. theft protection ever made. even monitors your bank accounts for takeover fraud but lifelock can't protect you or your bank account if you're not a member. get 60 risk-free days of

lifelock protection. call them again within 60 days to cancel if you're not happy for a full refund. see lifelock.com for details. give them a call at 1-800-356-5967 for lifelock ultimate. nfl scouting combine underway. and some big questions raised about the kind of questions that they are asking. we get into the sports realm. we get right to the source. the super bowl champ. right to the baltimore ravens. we get right to brendan ayanbadejo. welcome back to the show. >> hey, b. p., what up my man? we're boys now so we gotta go past first names and last names and go to nicknames. >> bill: b.a.? >> that's what they know me as. >> b. p. is you, bill press. >> bill: so nick says when he

was up and they they were taking a look at him and they were asking him -- want to know a little bit about him he, from the university of colorado, he says that they ask him so, do you like girls? i guess my question is did they ask you that question and do you think that's an appropriate question? >> that's definitely not an appropriate question and you know thinking back from 14 years ago when i was going through my combine prep and everything, i try to think about what types of questions they asked me and ask if you have a wife fiancee if you have a girlfriend or kids. they asked me that but never in a way where they were questioning my sexual orientation. it is definitely inappropriate. >> bill: do you think -- i guess do we just have to take him at his word, right and if they were asking him, you gotta assume they were asking everybody else who came along or at least some of them. >> with everything that's been happening with mantei te'o and

the questions he's been receiving, i'm not surprised people at the combine especially people working for the nfl have succumbed to such questions because it has been a long time thing in the league, you assume everybody is straight and now with all of the questions and things going on, i guess people are asking. but it never affected anybody's performance before. players who have come out in the past they've been great players. so i just don't see the relevance about that. >> we talk about how inappropriate it is. it is clearly inappropriate. but are there any kind of legal guidelines here? is this something that's illegal for the nfl to be asking? >> you know, i'm not sure. i know in corporate america you're not allowed to discriminate in such a way. but in the nfl i'm not sure. the nfl abides by its own set of rules. i'm sure we'll find out exactly what's going on. >> i also think it is interesting, i don't know if we can draw the difference in this particular case, there is a

difference. there this is not necessarily the nfl the organization. this is on sort of a team level. so even if the league sort of says you know, we welcome everybody. we want everybody, whether or not that's the truth this is sort of on a team by team basis is that right? >> yeah. you know, under the nfl law every team has to abide by the same law but then within the teams, there's different criteria and teams find are important. so this is just probably one of those things where one or two teams, i'm speculating decided to go off the cuff and ask these types of questions not that every team in the nfl does something like this. they have different guidelines and things to do to find out what a player is like. what his personality is like. what are his interests to make sure they're in line with what the team's interests are. >> bill: when you were in studio a week or so ago you mentioned that we need like a jacki robinson, first openly gay

player in the major league. what happened have happened if nick would have said i like girls but i like boys better. what if he had come out and said i'm gay. so what? do you think he could have been picked? >> you know, i think the combine, they're there to find out players they want in their organization. potentially that could hurt him and unfortunately in this day and age you know, players still have to stay positive in line. i think it would be harder if you're not on a team and you don't have a contract and you said yeah, you know, i'm gay than if you're already on a team. last night, i was doing msnbc and i said selfishly i think a player shouldn't tell the team what their sexual orientation is. once you're on a team, you can do that because i wouldn't want that dream of them becoming nfl player to be crushed or to be any harder than it already is.

so ultimately, at the end of the day, it is up to the person if they're comfortable doing it now, doing it later or doing it when they retire but we're working so hard so players can be themselves and fight bigotry throughout sports. >> bill: we got rid of don't ask, don't tell in the military but it sounds like it is still around in the nfl. good luck with your mba. i want to tell everybody exciting to follow us on twitter but more exciting to follow brendon ayanbadejo at brendon310. talk to you again soon. >> all right. >> bill: b. p. signing out here. i'll be back with a parting shot. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." [ male announcer ] get more during red lobster's lobsterfest. with the year's largest selection of mouth-watering lobster entrees. like our delicious lobster lover's dream, featuring two kinds of succulent lobster tails. converstion started next. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me.

the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv. the bar harbor bake is really worth trying. [ male announcer ] get more during red lobster's lobsterfest. with the year's largest selection of mouth-watering lobster entrees. like our delicious lobster lover's dream, featuring two kinds of succulent lobster tails. or our savory, new grilled maine lobster and lobster tacos. it's back, but not for long. [ woman ] our guests go crazy for lobsterfest. my favorite entree is the lobster lover's dream. what's yours? come celebrate lobsterfest and sea food differently.